Neal Lawson, Chair of Compass

Good but not yet good enough. With only 1% more of the vote than Foot had in 1983, Labour has an ideological, policy and organisational mountain to climb.

What "big idea" in terms of policy/strategy do you think Labour should pursue in opposition?

Labour should dare more democracy in every workplace, hospital, school, and community in the land. That means trusting people to become the masters of their destiny through collective action and countering the might of the market. and localising the state

Who should Labour be appealing to to win the next election? (Disaffected Lib Dems, soft Tory vote, the core vote?)

Labour should target everyone who is one or two pay cheques from homelessness, everyone who feels their life is out of control, anxious, exhausting and insecure. It's not a question of whether Labour targets the centre or the core of its vote. [It's] how they unite these interests under common themes. The politics of pay, time, identity, housing and good public services can create a consensus for progressive change. This isn't a conservative country and there isn't a progressive majority simply waiting for us – it has to be actively constructed.

What would be your top tip for Ed Miliband to give steel to his leadership?

Ed has to wake up every morning knowing, as party leader, just how powerful he is. The party lost badly as New Labour, and needs to transform itself to deal with a post-crash/climate change world. Everyday Ed forgets the power he has to do this he becomes a little less powerful.

What slogan would you suggest for Labour?

Labour should borrow from the Swedish social democrats: "secure people dare".

Paul Hackett, Director, the Smith Institute

What is your verdict on Ed Miliband's leadership so far?

Still too early to judge. He's struggling to project himself as a strong leader and has yet to connect effectively with the "squeezed middle". However, he has made a clear break with New Labour and opened up space for a wide-ranging policy rethink.

What "big idea" in terms of policy/strategy do you think Labour should pursue in opposition?

Be wary of the big ideas, like "third way" and "big society". Good for policy wonks, but voters are often sceptical and unresponsive. Better to offer a broad vision and narrative of the future with small and medium-sized practical policies that touch people's real lives: on employment security, incomes, housing, student fees etc.

Who should Labour be appealing to to win the next election? (Disaffected Lib Dems, soft Tory vote, the core vote?)

Labour has lost 5 million voters since 1997, mostly working class – split three ways between Tory/BNP, Lib Dems and stay at homes. Labour has to strike the right balance between keeping the fairly loyal ABC1 voters at the same time as reaching out to its disenchanted core vote. It also has to win back seats in suburbia.

What would be your top tip for Ed Miliband to give steel to his leadership?

Ed needs to present himself as tougher and more assertive and at times aggressive and angry. He should wear the captain's arm band defiantly.

What slogan would you suggest for Labour?

The combination of cuts and reforms is creating a society of winners and losers, and an "us and them" attitude. Counter Cameron's disingenuous "one nation Conservatism" with a cry for "A United Kingdom, not a divided Britain".

Kitty Ussher, Director of Demos

What is your verdict on Ed Miliband's leadership so far?

Ed has brought some internal stability and kicked off a necessary policy review, that may yet yield results, but he has yet to articulate a political identity for either himself or his party that is anywhere near attracting the attention of the public.

What "big idea" in terms of policy/strategy do you think Labour should pursue in opposition?

Three-quarters of the population now self-identify as middle class. While always mindful of the quarter at the bottom, Labour needs to get inside the lives of this mainstream majority, understand their fears and hopes and how both will develop as the economy recovers. It should be confident in using the power of financial and other markets to achieve social goals such as increasing access to affordable insurance to shield against insecurity. Some of this was around in early ideas around the "squeezed middle" and the "British promise"; they now need to be developed into radical, appealing and common-sense policies with everyday resonance.

Who should Labour be appealing to to win the next election? (Disaffected Lib Dems, soft Tory vote, the core vote?)

The early Blair coalition.

What would be your top tip for Ed Miliband to give steel to his leadership?

Remember, British people pride themselves on their commonsense – they may jump on populist bandwagons with you, but they'll get off them before you too.

What slogan would you suggest for Labour?

He is several years away from being able to convince people there is substance behind a slogan. His task now is to develop impactful policies.

Sunder Katwala, General secretary, Fabian Society

What is your verdict on Ed Miliband's leadership so far?

He's doing better than many people say. A year since Labour got 2% less of the vote than the Tories in 1997, he understands the need to earn permission to be heard again. It's bound to take time. I know he has a plan about what needs to change – but nobody has heard it yet, even around Westminster. He needs to change that.

What "big idea" in terms of policy/strategy do you think Labour should pursue in opposition?

A credible economic argument is vital. But the next election must also be about choices for the future. So scrutinise the fairness of what this government does – are the next generation bearing too much of the cuts burden? – as the platform for the choices to keep the British promise of a better future.

Who should Labour be appealing to to win the next election? (Disaffected Lib Dems, soft Tory vote, the core vote?)

Labour's vote fell from 44% to 29% from 1997 to 2010 but with the Tories and Lib Dems gaining only 6 points each. So arguing about which voters Labour shouldn't want is silly — a recipe for defeat. Those who have switched from the Lib Dems are likely to stay; now the Tory-Labour battle must be joined too. But winning coalitions aren't built like patchwork quilts from demographic segments: it takes a coherent argument with broad appeal.

What would be your top tip for Ed Miliband to give steel to his leadership?

Articulate his strategy to get Labour into power. Promoting open debate has been good. This summer and autumn, we need to hear where the leader defines where he wants the rethink to end up.

What slogan would you suggest for Labour?

Let's invest hope in our future.

Robert Philpot, Director, Progress

What is your verdict on Ed Miliband's leadership so far?

Labour suffered a catastrophic loss of support in 2010. Ed has proved that he can rebuild its heartland base. His challenge now is to do the same in "middle Britain".

What "big idea" in terms of policy/strategy do you think Labour should pursue in opposition?

Redistributing power, the theme of Progress's forthcoming Purple Book. Richard Crossman once argued that "social democracy consists of giving people a chance to decide for themselves". Too few people believe those are Labour's intentions. Ed needs to show how we'd take power from institutions and place it in the hands of people and their communities – tackling unresponsive public services and top-down bureaucracies, which often afflict the poorest the most. And, unlike the Tories, recognising the need to tackle concentrations of market power, levelling the playing field between consumers, workers and corporations.

Who should Labour be appealing to to win the next election? (Disaffected Lib Dems, soft Tory vote, the core vote?)

The notion that a "rainbow coalition" of left-of-centre voters can get Ed into No 10 is simply false. The Scottish elections showed the limits of "traditional Labour", while the local elections demonstrated that simply appealing to our core vote and disaffected Liberal Democrats gets you about 36% of the vote. That won't be enough to win a general election.

Labour needs to reach out to those who have voted Tory in the past. This isn't an either/ or choice — as in the 1990s, Labour needs a set of policies that allow it to build a broad-based, cross-class coalition of support.

What would be your top tip for Ed Miliband to give steel to his leadership?

Don't be scared of the party that elected you. Tony Blair didn't deliberately set out to define himself against the Labour party – but in reaching out to the country, he recognised the need to challenge some of those who were more interested in remaining in their comfort zone than winning elections.

What slogan would you suggest for Labour?

Opportunity, responsibility, community.

Nick Pearce, Director, IPPR – Institute for Public Policy Research

What is your verdict on Ed Miliband's leadership so far?

He needs to renew the party's political identity, establish a new policy agenda and reconnect Labour to the British people. These are major challenges on which he has barely got started.

What "big idea" in terms of policy/strategy do you think Labour should pursue in opposition?

Above all, Labour needs to restore its economic credibility. Without that, it can't win. It shouldn't simply sign up to the Government's deficit reduction programme, which would shatter the leadership's political authority instantly. But it must reckon with its own economic record and acknowledge that Britain was highly vulnerable to the economic crash because of our under-regulated banks, high levels of household debt, and narrow tax base.

Who should Labour be appealing to to win the next election? (Disaffected Lib Dems, soft Tory vote, the core vote?)

Labour needs to be capable of broad appeal and much more open to coalition politics. Tribalism is self-defeating.

What would be your top tip for Ed Miliband to give steel to his leadership?

He needs to be bold and take some risks. There are no prizes for caution in modern politics. Labour should be unashamedly reformist on public services, refusing to cede this ground, while reaching into the conservative tradition to nourish its account of community and valued institutions.

What slogan would you suggest for Labour?

Labour needs a simpler, clearer offer: instead of complex tax credits, it should back universal services like childcare. But don't ask a policy wonk for a slogan!

Lord (Maurice) Glasman, Reader in political theory, London Metropolitan University, and advocate of "Blue Labour"

What is your verdict on Ed Miliband's leadership so far?

Unhurried and sensible. Ed has grasped that the coalition government is a loveless marriage held together by a hasty pre-nup agreement. The nature of the tensions within it are only just beginning to emerge. He has held the party together after a severe defeat and has opened up the debate in a way that has not happened in 30 years.

What "big idea" in terms of policy/strategy do you think Labour should pursue in opposition?

I would obviously say Blue Labour. The reconnection of Labour to family life and care for children and parents, of honouring work and protecting the people and places that people love is the task of the next four years.

Who should Labour be appealing to to win the next election? (Disaffected Lib Dems, soft Tory vote, the core vote?)

The Lib Dems will not matter at the next election. It will be a straight fight between Labour and Conservative for England. The core stategy of Blue Labour is to strengthen our core vote and our appeal to those who voted conservative.

What would be your top tip for Ed Miliband to give steel to his leadership?

Make the unions an offer on social partnership and build your agenda around private sector growth.

What slogan would you suggest for Labour?

Ed gets it.

Anna Turley, Editor, Progressive Localism, and a ex-special adviser to David Blunkett and Hilary Armstrong

What is your verdict on Ed Miliband's leadership so far?

Ed has made good progress but he needs to be less inhibited and take risks. He must clearly articulate people's fears, hopes and aspirations. You have to start where people already are, not where you want them to be. Once you resonate on the things that affect their daily lives like rising costs of bills, jobs and crime, then you have legitimacy to set out a vision they can believe in.Don't be afraid of communicating a simple image. You can criticise husky photoshoots or football headers, but they can work wonders to convey a message or sense of the person.

What "big idea" in terms of policy/strategy do you think Labour should pursue in opposition?

Ed should look to where Labour is redefining itself – in local government. Councils are building co-operative models in social care and housing, transforming the way the state and local people work together.

Who should Labour be appealing to to win the next election? (Disaffected Lib Dems, soft Tory vote, the core vote?)

Labour should not cynically appeal to particular sectors of society. The public do not see themselves in in socioeconomic or political pigeonholes. Nor are they naive or easily manipulated. They respect leadership and clear vision, even if they don't agree with it.

What would be your top tip for Ed Miliband to give steel to his leadership?

Do not rely on messages of optimism. People have fears too. Don't exploit them but understand and relate to them.

What slogan would you suggest for Labour?

This is not the time for simplistic slogans. Ed is a substantive politician and the vision is more important than the slogan.

Vidhya Alakeson, director of research at the Resolution Foundation

What is your verdict on Ed Miliband's leadership so far?

Ed Miliband has scored some victories opposing the government's public service reform agenda. On the NHS, for example, he has played his part in forcing a government rethink. In coining the term "the squeezed middle", he has helped open up a critical debate about living standards in Britain. But he has had less to say about how to tackle the issue.

What "big idea" in terms of policy/strategy do you think Labour should pursue in opposition?

The expectations of ordinary working families that they will see their living standards improve in good economic times, be able to afford to buy a house and save for their future are being called into question. Labour needs to respond to this with policies to develop good quality rented accommodation for families alongside home ownership; address the high costs of childcare to allow more women to remain in work; and deliver a recovery that creates better paid jobs with prospects for progression.

Who should Labour be appealing to to win the next election? (Disaffected Lib Dems, soft Tory vote, the core vote?)

Of course, Labour needs to continue to pay attention to those on the lowest incomes who are the most vulnerable in society. But to win again, Labour must reconnect with the increasingly disaffected 11 million voters on low-to-middle incomes. No political party can ignore this group and Labour has the opportunity to make them the centre-piece of its strategy.

What would be your top tip for Ed Miliband to give steel to his leadership?

Develop a clearer alternative economic plan that will ensure that the future recovery improves the lives of those in the middle and on lower incomes, not just those at the top.

What slogan would you suggest for Labour?

Stuck in the middle with you.

• Does Labour need to change and how should it plan for the future? Share your thoughts in the comments section below